In 1424, Henry V's younger brother, John the Duke of Bedford, won the Battle of Avrels, continuing the story of England's conquest of France with astonishing success.
As a brother of the king, John was given the administration of England in 1415, while Henry V continued his conquests in France, eventually winning at Agencourt. Before Henry V's great victory, he captured the strategic port of Avler on the Normandy coast, but this time he suffered heavy casualties. Henry V's overriding ambition was to complete the unfinished conquest of France by his great-grandfather Edward III. However, before 1415, England's only territory on the northwestern coast of Flemish was Calais. If Henry V wanted to have an extra springboard in his second conquest of Normandy, then defending Avler was crucial.
The French were well aware of this, and in April 1416, with the assistance of the Genoese fleet, a sea blockade of Afleur began. It was the first time since the Battle of Agencourt that the English had lost the initiative, and it wasn't until August that a reinforcement fleet set sail. Because an alliance was being negotiated with the visiting Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund I, Henry V was unable to take command of it himself and sent John to rescue Avler.
It was clear that John was not a good commander, for he had little military experience, and he had to fight against some 150 Galleons of France and Genoa, especially the Ships of the Genoese. Nevertheless, John led a fleet of about 100 ships to resolutely go. On August 15 at the mouth of the Seine, fierce fighting ensued between the two sides.
Medieval naval warfare is a replica of land warfare. Enemies use hook anchors to connect ships together to form a huge, floating wooden battlefield. In the past, the English had used the advantage of the longbow to win naval battles, and in the naval battle of 1416, they repeated the same trick. An unnamed British chronicler wrote: "After the two sides exchanged fire... The anger of the troops reached a boiling point. After five or six hours of long, hard fighting, the English finally won. ”
The Battle of Vernaye paved the way for the capture of Bourges, and the whole of France could become a staple of England
The Battle of the Seine was fought fiercely because neither side could afford to lose. The French, whose self-esteem had been severely damaged at the Battle of Agencourt, were not content to lose control of the English Channel, while the English did not want to lose their foothold in Normandy. England's victory was of great strategic importance. Although the Battle of Agencourt was a tactical victory, it did not immediately lead to a victory in the war, and John's victory should not be underestimated. If Afleur was retaken by the French, Henry V's conquest would have to start all over again, completely changing the course of history.
The siege of Avler led Henry V to conquer Normandy in 1417, leading to the Treaty of Troyes in 1420. The treaty recognized Henry V as heir to the French throne, laying the foundations for a two-monarchy, but assuming no victory for John, all this would have been on paper. John's performance in battle won praise from his contemporaries. People say, "In that battle, his bravery was unbeatable. Siegsmond I said emotionally to Henry V: "A subject with such a king is happy, but a king with such a subject is happier." ”
John, Duke of Bedford, knelt before St. George. As regent of France, he succeeded in writing the conquest story of his brother Henry V
(Source: Plantagenet Dynasty)